Convergence: Are the Eurozone Countries Too Different?

The Eurozone countries are economically different. The crisis has rendered some of these differences more acute and this could destabilize the currency union. The Eurozone countries therefore need to agree on which type of convergence is most important to them and the best way to achieve it.

This briefing, written by Anna auf dem Brinke, research fellow at the Jacques Delors Institute – Berlin, explains in which areas the euro countries need to converge. It asks what differences could or should remain and it looks at the necessary instruments to achieve this.